


Always

by ainui



Category: Avengers Assemble (Cartoon), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, But mostly fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-05
Updated: 2018-06-05
Packaged: 2019-05-18 15:17:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,236
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14855231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ainui/pseuds/ainui
Summary: Steve is worried, Tony just wants to fix his damn suit.ORAfter the MODOK used the mind stone to swap the Avenger's minds, Steve confronts Tony about the injuries he noticed while he was in Iron Man's body.post 2x11





	Always

Iron Man would never take his body for granted again.

Sure, it was pretty average, and he looked like a child standing next the god that was Captain America, but it was infinitely better than Clint's. For Tony's short time in the archer's body, he swore he hadn't been able to feel anything with his hands, they were so damn calloused. Not to mention the weirdest muscle distribution ever. Clint kept in shape just as well as the rest of the team, but nothing could really make up for the ridiculous amount of arm strength Barton had from years of pulling back the bowstring. Which was infinitely more difficult than Tony had expected. He made it look so  _easy_.

That being said, he certainly did not miss the dull throbbing that came with his body, because while Clint earned his keep, he wasn't as... hands on as Tony tended to be during battle. His repulsors were powerful but couldn't boast the same deadly accuracy from a distance. This earned him a few more bumps and bruises than the sharpshooter. He felt a pang of sympathy for Steve. He probably didn't have the best time in Tony's body.

By the time the team made it back to the tower, Tony was sporting a pounding headache that was really only worsened by Fury's all too familiar lecturing.

"We're still holding onto the mind stone," Stark said curtly. "Avengers out."

God, Tony swore Fury was getting more annoying each day.

"You were totally playing video games the whole time, weren't you?" Clint said with a smirk.

"New high score."

Hawkeye snorted and walked out, no doubt on his way to the kitchen to steal whatever food was left. He prayed Hulk kept the damage to a minimum, because he really wasn't in the mood to deal with more damages to the tower. He sighed as he hit the catches on his suit, hissing as the metal jostled his bruised ribs. It was quite clear Cap had no idea what he was doing, because the suit was a looking- and feeling- worse for wear. He'd have to fix it up before their next mission. Another all nighter, doubtless.

After a quick shower Tony wandered into the kitchen. Might as well start off the caffeine kick before the day's exhaustion set in. He didn't even notice one star spangled super soldier creeping up until a hand was on his shoulder.

"Jesus!" he jerked, spilling coffee all over the counter. "Give a guy a warning, would you, Cap?"

Steve looked... sullen, to say the least. "Tony..."

He wiped the annoyance off his face immediately, setting his now mostly empty mug on the counter. "Hey, what's wrong? If this is about the suit, I really don't-"

"Tony, why didn't you say anything?"

The brunette froze. Okay, Iron Man messed up on a daily basis, but he was fairly certain he hadn't done anything to warrant this level of disappointment. "What are you talking about?"

Steve put a hesitant hand on Tony's middle, causing the shorter man to flush at the contact. "S-Steve?"

His intent became a lot more clear once Steve pressed on his ribs just enough to make him wince. "Why didn't you say you were hurt?"

"Hurt? Steve, a couple bruised ribs is pretty staple for an Avenger. We don't all have serum-enhanced healing, you know."

The blond furrowed his eyebrows, clearly not comforted by Tony's words. "And a gash in your leg, and God knows what kind of bruises on your back, I couldn't tell but it  _hurt_ -"

"Steve, I'm fine. I don't think you're used to long lasting pain. It probably just weirded you out to be in my body."

"No!" Steve snapped, making Tony flinch back. "I- Sorry. But no, no one else has these kinds of injuries. Did you even check to make sure none of your ribs were fractured?"

Tony sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I think I would know."

"Doubtful. You didn't even have your leg bandaged, it could get infected-"

"It's a tiny cut, Steve, don't you think you're overreacting?"

"No, frankly I don't, because even if you weren't injured you still are absolutely incapable of taking care of yourself! Look at you, you're about to go down to your lab, right? You need to sleep. No wonder you're in bad shape. You can't keep functioning like this."

"I've been doing just fine," he retorted, grabbing his mug and refilling it. The smell of piping hot coffee allowed some of the tension in his shoulders to diminish. He just needed to get to his lab and he'd be fine. "I have to get the suit fixed before another stone shows up. We can't afford to have a member of the team out of commission." He started to step past Steve, but was stopped by a firm hand on his chest, right over the arc reactor.

"That's exactly my point! We need you, and you can't fight if you're injured like this!"

Tony's blood ran cold. "Yeah, well don't worry. I wouldn't want to damage an asset to the team. I'll be fine."

He shoved past Cap, making a bee line to the elevator in an attempt to ignore the protests behind him. "Tony, you know that's not what I meant-"

"Hm, no, I'm pretty sure that's exactly what you meant. I'll be in the lab if you need me. For anything  _important_."

And with that, the doors shut, leaving Tony to feel pretty damn impressed with his theatrical exit.

 

\---

 

He woke up to a gentle hand on his shoulder, and his face pressed unpleasantly against his work station. When the hell had he fallen asleep?

"Tony, come on, let's get you to your room." The voice was so caring, he half expected to see Rhodey when he opened his eyes.

"Mph... Cap?"

His only response was a soft sigh, and before Tony could get his thoughts together, a strong pair of arms were lifting him. Bridal-style. Had he not still been half asleep, he'd be fighting tooth and nail. Instead he hid his red face in the nearest object, that being Steve's chest.

_Holy shit._

Steve did nothing but hold Tony a little closer, and the only conclusion to be made was that the brunette was dreaming. That had to be it.

Soon enough they arrived in Tony's room, and Steve carefully deposited him onto the bed, gently pulling the duvet over him. It was quiet for a moment, and for a second Tony figured Steve must have left. 

"Tony, I really wish you would take care of yourself. I don't think... I can't stand to see you hurting. I care about you. So much it hurts. Just try, a little bit. For me."

Steve pressed a chaste kiss to Tony's forehead before walking towards the door. That was proof enough, right? Proof that Tony could take this risk.

"Steve," he muttered. The super soldier turned around, his face softer than he'd ever seen it.

"Hm?"

"Stay?"

Steve hesitated for a moment, before smiling and walking over the the bed. Tony shifted over, smiling once he felt the blond slide in next to him. Tony felt a warmth on his back as an arm slipped over his waist, and he was pretty sure he'd never felt this at peace before. Steve pressed another gently kiss to the back of Tony's head.

"Always."


End file.
